With the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026 only three weeks away, Fox Sports is ready for the challenge.
The sports network held its media day on Thursday for the global tournament, which starts on June 11. During the event, it paraded its on-air sports team, including studio hosts Rob Stone and Rebecca Lowe (whom they’ve borrowed from NBC Sports), as well as analysts such as Alexi Lalas, Carli Lloyd, Stu Holden, and Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez. Also on hand was Zac Kenworthy, Fox Sports vice president of production.
Calling it the biggest production it has ever done, Fox Sports will broadcast all 104 matches, with 70 on network television and 34 on FS1. The streaming service Fox One will also stream all matches throughout the tournament.
Speaking to ADWEEK, Kenworthy said a lot of credit goes to the network’s long-running partnership with Host Broadcast Services (HBS), the official Host Broadcaster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. HBS controls the cameras during matches and, according to Kenworthy, is aware of how Fox Sports covers American sports.
Calling the relationship with HBS “wonderful,” Kenworthy said they have been in consultation with the company since 2015 in anticipation of the World Cup coming to American soil.
These conversations have led to better in-game access in previous tournaments, including in 2022, when, for the first time, Fox Sports was able to get cameras in the dressing rooms before players came out for warm-ups.
Kenworthy says that in this year’s World Cup, HBS will allow broadcasters to request a pre-match, center-circle stand-up position for 10 minutes during a big game.
“You can actually have a reporter on the field doing a pre-match report with the team warming up behind you as opposed to on the sidelines,” he noted.
In addition, he said broadcasters can request a 30-second halftime interview with a player, provided the soccer federation of the country in question approves it.
“Whether we do that or not yet, [it is] still part of the conversation,” Kenworthy said, pointing out that the halftime window is very tight, as that is when they will run a lot of their commercial inventory.
This year’s World Cup will also, for the first time, feature hydration breaks during the midway point of the first and second halves of the matches. FIFA has allowed broadcasters to run commercials during these breaks, which will last three minutes per half.
ADWEEK recently reported that squeeze-back ads, which don’t cut away from the main feed, will be part of the hydration breaks during matches. However, Kenworthy didn’t share any details about the breaks, saying Fox was having ongoing conversations with FIFA.
